Flourless Chocolate-Brazil Nut Cake

We pretty shamelessly took this recipe right out of a magazine and modified it ever so slightly (the original called for using hazelnuts) to serve as dessert at our Christmas eve dinner.

The recipe called for Frangelico, which I quite frankly hadn't heard about before. It turns out to be an Italian hazelnut liquor containing 24% A.B.V. and not at all difficult to obtain around these parts. When I went to a nearby provider of bottled drinks and asked for it I was informed that not only could he sell me Frangelico, but he could also sell me a knock-off brand for far less... since the recipe only called for 125 mL (1/2 cup) of it I opted for the real thing as that was also available in a handy 375 mL (1.5 cups) bottle (mind you, this was still a bit more expensive than 1 quart (1L) of the knock-off brand - but I didn't feel the need to stock up on this liquor).

Ingredients:
- 325 g (11.5 oz) 60% cocoa (bittersweet chocolate)
- 170 g (1 ¹/₂ sticks) unsalted butter
- 6 large eggs
- 2.5 dL (1 cup) golden brown sugar
- 125 mL (¹/₂ cup) Frangelico (divided)
- 145 g (5 oz) finely ground Brazil nuts [1]
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 2.5 dL (1 cup) heavy whipping cream

The chocolate and the butter was melted and stirred together on a warm water-bath (2 portions, mainly due to size of bowl used).

In a separate bowl the the eggs, golden brown sugar and half of the Frangelico was whisked together, then the chocolate butter mixture was whisked in. The ground brazil nuts and the salt was stirred into the mixture, which was then poured into a round silicone baking form placed inside a springform of slightly larger diameter for added support.[2]

The baking form was covered with a lid of foil, placed in a large baking pan which was filled with water so the water outside the springform was about level with the batter inside the silicone form. The cake was baked in the oven at 175 C (350 F) for about 1.5 hours. It was allowed to cool somewhat before moving it from the form to a plate, on which it was chilled in the fridge for several hours before serving with whipped cream whipped with the other half of the Frangelico. [3]It's excellent!! ... but quite heavy and this makes for a lot of servings - fortunately it stays good for days in the fridge (we might even think it's better the day after).

[1] We actually think that grinding the nuts less finely might add a nice crunch to the cake.
[2] A springform can be used instead of the silicone form - then you just have to wrap it carefully with foil, so no water seeps in.
[3] The recipe actually suggested topping with toasted nuts, we forgot this part, but might want to try that next time.

Red Cabbage

Although we do know at least one store that carries a brand of the traditional red cabbage sauerkraut we decided to try our hands at making some ourselves this holiday season.

Ingredients:
- 2 tsp butter
- 1 ¹/₂ red cabbage (1.1 kg, 2.4 lb)
- 2-3 dL (1 cup) red wine
- 1 dL (1/2 cup) balsamic vinegar
- 2-3 dL (1 cup) black currant juice
- 1-1.5 tsp ground allspice
- 1 tbsp sugar
- salt & pepper

The cabbage was chopped using a food processor, which actually ended up chopping it a little too finely. The cabbage was sautéed in butter in a large pot until it softened thereby reducing the volume. The wine and the vinegar was added, and the volume was reduced (till most or all of the alcohol had evaporated) before the black currant juice, allspice, sugar, salt & pepper was added.
The heat was reduced and the cabbage was allowed to simmer for a couple of hours.

When we first tried this, i.e. the same day as we prepared it, we were rather disappointed with the result, but we put the rest of the batch in the fridge anyway which turned out to be a wise decision: When we heated some of it up 2 days later it tasted a lot more like we'd hoped for (and what we've taken since then has also been fine).

This should also always be served warm, as a side to fatty meats such as pork roast (click here to see a picture of the final product), duck roast, liver pâté, Danish meat balls ('frikadeller') and the like.

Pork Belly Roast

Pork roast is probably the quintessential Danish cuisine: Pork, seasoned with nothing more fancy than salt (and possibly black pepper), served with potatoes and brown gravy. It's also winter food - few people find it ideal to eat such heavy (fatty) meals when it's too warm in the weather.

Traditionally it's made with a piece of meat with the skin still on it cut from the back of the pig. I haven't been able to find such a cut of pork here in California, but some years ago I found a small store that carries pork bellies with the skin still on it. Basically it's giant slab of uncured bacon - it's not perfect in the sense that the meat to fat ratio is a little lower than the cuts traditionally used, but at least it has the skin on it. And the skin is quite important - the true test of one's cooking skills in Denmark is to turn out a pork roast on which the skin has been cooked to crispy perfection...

Ingredients:
- 1 pork belly (see picture)
- salt & pepper
- water
- potatoes
- flour
- gravy color [1]
- red cabbage sauerkraut

The pork belly wasn't of equal thickness over the entire piece, so I cut it in two pieces each having even thickness because the thickness is quite important in the crisping of the skin towards the end of the procedure. The two pieces of meat were put in an oven-proof tray with the skin down, and enough water to fully submerge the skin was added. This was then placed in the oven at 175 C (350 F) for 30 minutes.

After this the skin was softened appreciably and could easily be scored as shown in the picture (taking care not to cut the actual meat). The skin was salted generously and the roast was put back in the oven, now with the skin up, still at 175 C (350 F) for 1.5 hours. At this point the larger of the 2 pieces already had the skin turned nice and crisp, while the smaller one wasn't quite right. The bigger piece was removed from the oven and sliced, the drippings were collected and the smaller piece went back in the oven at 275 C (525 F) to try to get the skin crisp on this piece as well. I wasn't very successful about this part of it - I was a little afraid to overdo it as it can quickly burn at this temperature.
While the roast was in the oven peeled potatoes were boiled in lightly salted water and when properly tender, the water was collected.

To make the gravy I took a tbsp of fat from the drippings, stirred in flour to make a paste, then with constant stirring added the potato water in small portions until a gravy of wanted texture was obtained - this was then seasoned with salt and pepper, colored with a few drops of gravy color.

Slices of pork belly roast was served with boiled potatoes, brown gravy and red cabbage. Pickles would also have gone well with this dish.

[1] Gravy color is a viscous liquid, highly concentrated in the same coloring agent as used to make Cola.

Ginger Herring

I think I can just squeeze in one more type of herring before Christmas: Ginger herring. These are in a clear dressing - unlike most other herrings I know.

Ingredients:
- 4 tbsp white vinegar
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 serrano chilies [1]
- 2 puya chillies [1]
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger
- 1 shallot
- about 200 g (7 oz) pieces of pickled herring

The chilies, ginger, shallot was diced finely. Then everything was mixed well and alloved to stand in the fridge over night before serving on dark whole grain rye bread.

[1] It is far from essential to use serrano and puya chilies - the idea is to use a green and a red chili. Since I used dried puya I soaked them before dicing them, but with fresh red chilies obviously this step can be omitted.

Kona Porter

I normally do not drink coffee in any of its many available forms, but when I saw this Pipeline Porter from Kona Brewing Co. made with 100% Kona coffee I saw sufficiently intrigued to try it out. And Mrs. Throat-Erator does enjoy coffee, so I thought she might enjoy it too.

It was pretty good. A good porter, although the coffee taste means I'll personally never be a great fan.

Liver Pâté

Danish liver pâté (leverpostej) is a quite popular spread in Denmark, most people will eat it - even those who otherwise shy away from liver (such as fried liver). On the other hand it can be difficult to get in stores as you travel far away from Denmark, and most people in Denmark only seldomly make it themselves (if ever). It doesn't particularly belong to the holiday season, but as it takes some time to make it, it has become traditional for us to make it when we have some extra time on our hands.

As far as I know it is more commonly made with pork liver in Denmark, but as I can only buy beef and chicken livers at the store here, I've opted for beef livers, which works out quite well. For pork fat we often buy cheap bacon and simply cut the fat from the meat (doesn't have to be done too meticulously - some of the meat can make it into the pâté).

Ingredients:
- 1.1 kg (2.5 lb) beef liver
- 550 g (1.2 lb) pork fat
- 3 large onions
- 60 g (2 oz) butter
- 100 g (3.5 oz) flour
- 8 dL (27 oz) milk
- 4 eggs
- salt & pepper

The liver, the pork fat and the onions were all chopped in a food processor (can be done together if the food processor is large enough to hold everything, but we did it separately here).

Chopped liver.

In a large pot, the butter was melted, then the flour was stirred in, and while stirring constantly on low heat the milk was added in portions (as when making a gravy - the end result should be of gravy texture). Then the liver, pork fat, onions, eggs and salt & pepper was stirred in.

The mixture was poured into bread pans (this size made 5 small (2"x5") and 4 medium (3"x8") pâtés and were baked at 220 C (440 F) for almost an hour. The bread pans were not filled to the brim as the pâté can rise somewhat during baking, although they do return to the original size when they're done.


The pâté can be enjoyed warm or cold, on white or dark bread. Some of our favorite extras include sliced pickled beets, crisp bacon, sautéed mushrooms, sliced tomatoes, red cabbage sauerkraut, or fried onions.

Of course it would be folly to make such a large batch if they didn't freeze well - which they do. They can also quite easily be warmed in the oven when de-frosted.

Update: The result is at least as good using pork liver.

Merry Christmas from Anchor Brewing Co

After a good friend (and trusted beer connoisseur) recommended this beer - the 2007 seasonal Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from Anchor Brewing Co. in San Francisco - I went and got myself a six pack to taste for myself.

Not only is it quite good, but it also comes pretty to close to embodying all the qualities I would have expected for a Danish Christmas beer. And since those are impossible to get here in California (even in Solvang) this comes as a nice alternative.

Swedish Chocolate Bread

Quite similarly to Finnish bread, these Swedish chocolate breads are really cookies. And no, I don't know if they are from Sweden. Actually in this case, I'm not even sure they are particularly for the Christmas time - but I like them a lot so I talked Mrs. Throat-Erator into making them. They are quite similar to the Finnish bread, but with some important differences.

Ingredients:
- 300 g (11 oz) flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 200 g (7 oz) sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar [1]
- 2 tbsp cocoa
- 200 g (7 oz) butter
- 2 eggs
- 50 g (2 oz) almonds
- 2 tbsp washed raw sugar [2]

The flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, cocoa, and baking powder was mixed in a bowl. The butter was cut in small pieces and worked in the flour mixture using fingers. One of the eggs was added the dough was formed using hands - it's a little soft. The dough was left in the bowl in the fridge for half an hour.

The dough was parted in 5 equal portions, each of which was rolled into rods - so long as to fit the baking plate on which they were then placed (on baking paper). Each rod was flattened until about 4 cm (1 1/2 inch) wide. They were then brushed with the other egg [3], and a mixture of finely cut almonds and raw sugar was sprinkled on top.

The large rods were baked at 175 C (350 F) in the top of the oven for about 10 minutes - they were rather soft (fudge like) when we took them out, the rods were immediately cut into smaller rods and allowed to cool before collecting them. This made us 75 cookies.

[1] see here for details.
[2] any kinds of sugar that comes in large crystals would do.
[3] actually this should have been only egg white, but we decided it didn't make that great of a difference.

Finnish Bread

Well, they are called Finnish bread, but actually they are cookies - and I don't even know if they really come from Finland. Foods have a funny tendency to get names that imply origins that may not be true. Think of Danish pastries - in Denmark they are known as bread from Vienna.

Finnish bread are considered one of the traditional Christmas cookies, and we decided they should be the one of the two kinds of cookies we'd bake this holiday season.

Ingredients:
- 375 g (13 oz) flour
- 85 g (3 oz) sugar
- 250 g (9 oz) butter
- 2 eggs
- 50 g (2 oz) almonds
- 2 tbsp washed raw sugar [1]

The flour and sugar was mixed in a bowl, then the butter was cut in smaller pieces and worked ("crumbled") into the flour/sugar mixture using fingers. Then 1 of the eggs was added and a firm dough was made using hands. The dough was rolled into rods approximately the thickness of a finger, which were then pressed flat and cut into small rods. The small rods were placed on baking plates with baking paper and allowed to stand in the fridge for at least one 1 hour.

After taking the cookies out of the fridge they were brushed with the other egg, and on top was sprinkled a mixture of raw sugar and finely cut almonds.

The cookies were baked in the bottom of the oven at 200 C (400 F) until golden (12-15 minutes).

This made us about 50 cookies, but they could probably have been cut into thinner rods.

[1] This doesn't have to be raw sugar - any kind of sugar that comes in relatively large crystals would do.

Pink Herring

Some 5-6 years ago I held a small Easter Lunch with 2 friends from the dorm. It was a fairly minimalistic concept: Basically we ate different kinds of pickled herring. For that occasion I came up with these pink herring (yes, the original name was more .. decadent..) which I quite liked and have made several times since.

Ingredients:
- 150 g (5 oz) sour cream
- 75 g (2 1/2 oz) mayonnaise
- salt & pepper
- 80 g (3 oz) red onion
- 75 g (2 1/2 oz) pickled beets
- extra beet juice to add color
- 150 g (5 oz) pieces of pickled herring [1]

The mayonnaise and the sour cream was mixed with a spoon, seasoned with salt and pepper. Into this was mixed finely diced red onion and pickled beets. The resulting color was very faintly pink, so I added a little more of the pickling juice from the beets. Finally the pieces of herring went in, and the mix was stored in the fridge overnight before serving on whole grain rye bread.

[1] This amount of dressing could easily take more herring than I used.

White Pizza

Not quite unlike this other pizza, this white pizza was made with olive oil, fresh spinach, ricotta cheese, crushed garlic, salt & pepper.

Bean Salad 2

This is just a slight modification of this salad.

Ingredients:
- 500 g (1 lb) green beans
- water
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- salt & pepper
- 1 bunch Italian parsley (chopped)
- 100 g (4 oz) feta cheese (diced)
- 425 g (15 oz) white beans (1 can, drained & rinsed)

The green beans were boiled in slightly salted water.

While the water for the green beans came to a boil, the other ingredients were mixed in a large bowl. When boiled the green beans were drained and mixed in with the rest.

Was served with baked potatoes and lamb chops.

Leek Herring

As we approach the winter solstice it's a traditional time for eating pickled herring, and in the weeks to come I'll probably show a couple of my favorite herring recipes.
We'll start off with these leek herrings, which I learned some 8 years ago when I moved into my second dorm.

Ingredients:
- 150 g (5 oz) sour cream
- 75 g (2 1/2 oz) mayonnaise
- salt & pepper [1]
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 small leek, ca. 80 g (3 oz)
- 150 g (5 oz) pieces of pickled herring [2]


The sour cream and mayonnaise were mixed with a spoon, then the salt, pepper, and crushed garlic was mixed in. The leek was cut in rings about 1/2 cm (1/5 inch) thick and rinsed well before they were added. Finally, pre-cut, pre-pickled herring was put in, mixed well with the rest and left to stand in the fridge for at least 1 night before serving on dark whole-grain rye bread. Goes well with beer and snaps.

[1] If I'd had any, I would have used white pepper.
[2] With the rest of the ingredients as listed here, certainly more herring could be added.

Chickpea Soup 1

Mrs. Throat-erator found this recipe and decided to make it for me because she knows how much I enjoy cumin. And because wintertime is soup-time.

Ingredients:
- oil
- 1 leek
- 400 g (1 14 oz can) chickpeas
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp cane sugar
- salt & pepper
- 1.5 L (6 cups) vegetable broth
- 1 1/4 dL (1/2 cup) whipping cream
- 1 large onion
- 1 (small) bunch parsley

The leek was rinsed and cut in rings, which were sautéed in oil in a large pot until they started to soften. The drained and rinsed chickpeas were added together with cumin, sugar, and 1 tsp salt. Then the vegetable broth and the cream was added, the soup was brought to a boil, and then let simmer for 40 minutes on low heat.

The onion was cut in boats which were fried in oil in a pan until brown and soft. Then the coarsely chopped parsley was mixed in, and the mix was seasoned with salt and pepper to taste.

The soup was blended briefly - i.e. not all the chickpeas were pureed, some escaped whole, which was clearly not the intention of the recipe we found, but I quite liked it this way: Some chickpeas pureed to give texture to the soup, some left (more or less) whole in the soup.

The soup was served immediately with some of the onion/parsley mix on top.

Onion Soup

Some time ago we started talking about wanting to try making onion soup, but nothing happened for a while, then we found this recipe, and for a while still nothing happened. We have to admit we weren't familiar with the consommé the recipe calls for, but we ended up assuming that the idea was to have something a little more intensely beefy than ordinary beef broth. Looking at the available options at the local market we decided to try adding Better Than Bouillon to beef it up..

Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 kg (2 lb) yellow onion
- 4 cans (14 oz each) beef broth
- 1 tbsp Better Than Bouillon beef base
- 1/2 cup grated pecorino cheese
- salt & pepper
- bread (to serve)

The onions were cut in boats and sautéed in melted butter in a large heavy-bottomed pot till they were soft and golden. Then the beef broth together with the Better Than Bouillon base was added and the pot was allowed to simmer for 10 minutes. Finally the grated cheese was stirred in and the soup was seasoned with salt and pepper.
Was served immediately with a slice of toasted multi-grain bread.

The Better Than Bouillon mixed in with the broth certainly worked nicely for the effect we were going for.

Serbian Stuffed Peppers

Recently I had my Serbian friend come over and show me how to make one of his favorite meals from home: Stuffed peppers. I couldn't find the authentic peppers for it, but he told me any sort of longish peppers, not too hot, should work. I decided to try out using both poblano and anaheim peppers.

Anaheim peppers

Ingredients:
- oil
- 1 large onion
- 500 g (1 lb) ground beef
- salt & pepper
- 3 dL (1 1/3 cup) parboiled rice
- 4 poblano chilies
- 4 anaheim chilies
- 1 roma tomato
- water
- plain yogurt (to serve)

Stuffing the peppers

The finely chopped onion was sautéed in a little oil in a large pan. When the onion pieces were golden, the meat was added together with generous amounts of salt and pepper. When the ground beef was browned the rice were added and the contents of the pan were mixed well, before being allowed to stand while preparing the peppers.

All the peppers were rinsed, the stem was cut out (leaving as much wall as possible) and most of the seeds were rinsed out of them. The meat/onion/rice mixture was stuffed into the peppers using a spoon and a knife, making sure they were stuffed quite densely and each pepper was closed with a slice of roma tomato. The peppers were put in a oven proof tray and the rest of the meat/onion/rice mixture was added around them. Then water was added, so as to just cover the peppers. Covered with foil, the tray went in the oven at 200-225 C (400-450 F) for about 45 minutes, after which the foil was removed allowing the excess water to boil off during the last minutes of cooking.

Serve with plain yogurt.

The poblano peppers were notably hotter than the anaheim peppers and my Serbian friend concluded they were a very good substitute for the pepper he would have used at home. He also said it's possible to use dried peppers, they just need to soak in hot water prior to being stuffed.

Update: Using dried peppers.

Potato Eggplant Curry

This dish happened one day when I wanted to prepare dinner using an eggplant and some potatoes, and I was quite happy with the result, so I made it again a few weeks later. Now, given that origin I don't know how close this comes to an actual Indian dish, but at least it should qualify as a curry.

Ingredients:
- oil
- caraway, ground coriander, cumin, Indian curry ^[1]
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 large onion
- 8 medium potatoes
- 5 dL (2 cups) milk
- 1 large eggplant
- 3 dL (1 cup) coconut threads
- roasted nuts (to serve)

In a large pan (preferably non-stick) a little oil was heated up and added caraway, ground coriander, ground cumin, crushed garlic, and coarsely chopped onion. This was stirred till the onion were translucent and the potatoes cut in large cubes were added together with and a generous amount of curry powder. This was then cooked on high heat until the potatoes got a crisp edge (but not cooked through), before the milk was added, brought to a boil, reduced and let simmer for 10-15 minutes. The eggplant cut in large cubes was added, stir in to give them color (but not long enough for them to "collapse") and finally the coconut threads were stirred in.
Serve immediately with roasted nuts.

^[1] My "Indian Curry" lists these ingredients: turmeric, coriander, cumin, lemon peel, black pepper, lemon (freeze dried), cardamom, dehydrated garlic, and red pepper.

Peppers & Confusions

I know I'm no Edward Weston, but take a look at these peppers:

But what kind of peppers are they? There seems to to be quite some confusion about peppers. I live in southern California (and come from a climate where even bell peppers need green houses to grow), but when I go to one of my local stores I often find myself being asked by the people who work there to identify the peppers I'm buying. Are these jalapeños? Could these perhaps be serranos?

Adding to the confusion is the mix-and-match of pepper names. Take the ones above for instance: Here (all local stores in my area) these peppers are referred to as pasillas, but as far as I can read on the internet the rest of the world (i.e. outside of California) agrees that these are called poblanos. To make matters worse dried poblano is known as ancho, while pasilla is commonly used about Oaxacan pasilla as well as chilaca (chile negro)...

Anyway, they're my new favorite pepper: a little hotter than bell peppers and I love the flavor. Leave them for a couple of days and they turn first wrinkled, later red.

Bacon Bagels

It's just like a BLT with a few more ingredients - I guess that becomes a BLTCCCOMB - but it's truly delicious..

Ingredients:
- toasted bagels
- hot & sweet mustard
- apple smoked bacon
- Gouda cheese
- rings of red onion
- cornichons
- pickled capers
- tomato slices
- red leaf lettuce

Potato Sunchoke Homefries (Sunchokes IV)

The other day when making homefries I used a mixture of potatoes and sunchokes - that worked quite well. Under these dry conditions - like baking them in the oven - the sunchokes don't have much tendency to overcook and become mushy.

Bean Salad 1

This is a really simple bean salad with green & white beans.

Ingredients:
- 500 g (1 lb) green beans
- water
- 2 tbsp read wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 bunch Italian parsley
- salt & pepper
- 425 g (15 oz) white beans (1 can)

If necessary clean the green beans, then boil them, and when they are done drain them.

While the water for the green beans is coming to a boil, mix in a bowl the oil and the vinegar, then add chopped parsley. Mix in the drained and rinsed white beans as well as the green beans. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Goulash of October 28th 2006

I came up with this dish last fall when I had bought some black lentils and made it a few times then. Some months ago I wanted to make it again, but then I couldn't find black lentils again anywhere. Finally I caved in and just got some ordinary lentils, so I could do this.

Ingredients:
- 4 slices bacon
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- paprika & oregano
- 8 pieces of chicken
- 1 large onion
- 1 bell pepper
- 20 cherry tomatoes
- 2 cups lentils
- 4 cups water
- salt

Cut the bacon in smaller pieces and fry in a large pot, then add crushed garlic and generous amounts of paprika and oregano before putting in the chicken. Turn the chicken pieces over until they are dark and crisp looking on the surface, continue cooking till they are cooked through, then take them out of the pot and store them under a piece of foil (or in the oven on low heat - just to keep them warm).
Add now to the pot the diced onion, strips of bell pepper and the tomatoes cut in halves. Add the lentils and the water, and let it all simmer for about 30 minutes. Serve with rice and the chicken.